Looking for apartment, but "lol internet job"

Synonymous

I moved from Montana to Maine a few years ago to care for a sick relative. The matter recently ended badly - the relative became violent, among other issues, to the point where it became dangerous for me to continue as caregiver.

During this stay, I built an eBay business so I could have a job that would allow me to stay at home for caregiving. The business now does provide enough for me to make a living - a modest living, but enough to pay for the essentials. Unfortunately, now that I'm moving back to Montana, I'm finding that landlords there apparently do not take this form of employment seriously. In calling up a few complexes to check for vacant units, despite explaining that I have tax records and more than enough in my bank account to cover the first month's rent plus a deposit (and that I will be finding additional, 40-hour-workweek outside employment upon arrival - future work doesn't count, I know, but still), it's been "olol the internet is not real". It's aggravating; I mean, I had a friend who rented at one of these complexes for over a year without a job, just living off his bank account. Internet employment is worse than no employment at all? (It's Montana; it's not a competitive rental market.)

It looks like I'll be defaulting to the "no apartment until you have an outside job" norm, but the weekly/monthly motels in that area are in short supply. Is there any way I can explain my business so I'm not thought of as a deadbeat or drug dealer?

In addition, since landlords seem to have a problem taking internet business seriously, is there any optimal way to explain this job experience to prospective employers? (My family was quite angry when I had to stop caregiving, so I'm not going to get any backup in the "oh, yeah, she was a stay-at-home caregiver during that time" department. I don't want employers to look at my resume and conclude, "oh, so you just did nothing for a few years, huh?". I'm not shooting for anything beyond a basic clerk job, but gaps like that are bad for any interview.)

Feral

Don't tell them it's an internet business.
You're a self-employed entrepeneur. You sell [whatevers] or provide [whatever] service. You make X amount of money per year. You have Y number of customers or clients or sales per month. You have tax records that can demonstrate all of this.
You don't have to say you use the Internet to do business.

EggyToast

Yeah, stop describing it as "ebay." You're self-employed, and you have the tax records to prove it.

You could probably call these places up. Most of the time, they generally only care about your bank account. Don't get discouraged, though; not all landlords are jerks. However, do you dress up? How do you go to see these apartments? If you go in dressed up, not "nightclub" dressed up but, say, "yuppie" dressed up, they'll realize you're serious about renting. If you go looking like a thugly, they'll probably find any reason to not rent to you.

Same with finding a job. The employer isn't going to call your parents to check if you were actually a caregiver. Think about it -- you weren't doing anything for, let's say 3 years. What DID you do? You say "I moved to maine and took care of a sick relative." What, an employer is going to call you a liar, or they're going to see that you're committed to things you care about?

It can go either way, so you need to spin a serious face on it. I get the impression that you, yourself, don't take this as serious as you should. Taking years off of your life to go care for someone is a huge ordeal. The fact that you were able to turn that into a way to actually make money is huge.

Next time you talk to one of these people, say you're self employed and can furnish tax records if requested, but you doubt that will be necessary for this rental as you'll have no problems paying the rent. Then move on to say that you would like to schedule a time to view the apartment as soon as possible. When you meet them to see the apartment, if they ask what you do, you tell them factually that you had spent years caring for a sick relative and developed a modest eBay business that provides an adequate income, and that you're actually looking to supplement it with something local.

Do all you can to make it sound like you've been around a bit and are looking to "set up" in Montana. Don't make it sound like you're just trying to rent a place. Note that it's all the truth, as well -- you ARE looking to set up your life in Montana. Don't just say "Yeah I sell some stuff on eBay" -- people think you sell beanie babies for some extra spending money.

crake

"freelance" is your word of the day. Freelance always covers your ass on a resume. I've used it time and again, weather it was true or not at the time.